Like An Old Married Couple
by rain chant
Summary: When the Doctor ran to a disease-striken planet, he didn't expect to find advice on his own love life.  But telling the ending of a tale before it has run its course is the worst thing you can do to a story.  11/River.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: I don't own Doctor Who, but that'd be cool. **

**This story won't have many chapters: I only broke it up to make it easier to read. Please review, if you'd like, and enjoy!**

* * *

><p>Jana's mother told stories about the Doctor; that was why she hadn't been put in the quarantine already. When the soldiers came around, looking for people with the telltale red spots on their faces and limbs, her mom had simply invited them to sit down for a bit–which they did, though at a safe distance–and then told them one of her favorite stories, which was the Ballad of Donna Noble and the Doctor. The soldiers were so entranced that they let Jana's mom stay out of the Sick House, but they wouldn't allow her to leave the city. Since then, neither Jana nor her mother, Malya, had strayed more than twenty feet from the small tent in Pliny Market that they called home.<p>

Even the people who came to hear her mother tell stories–and she was the best Teller on the planet Ovid, no question–stood away from the tent, straining to hear Malya's low voice. They left coins for her at their feet, and it was Jana's job to go around and collect the coins once the story was done, lest someone come and steal them. Thought Jana hadn't yet gotten the spots, people moved away from her like the nine-year-old scared them.

It was rubbish. But people, more often than not, died from the spots. There was no cure.

Never, ever had she hated the situation more than when two boys, after hearing a tale from Malya, laid a small stack on coins on the ground forty feet away. The money would have bought them two loaves of bread, at least, but the boys had placed it too far away for them to get to safely: a nearby soldier watched their every move. The two were confined to their tent just as surely as if they were locked up in the Sick House with the rest of the spotters.

"It's okay, Jana," her mother soothed, her hand gently patting Jana's back. "We won't starve without those coins. Just leave them be."

But the girl walked out to the very edges of the invisible, intangible barrier that separated them from everyone else. She mustered up enough courage to look at the faces of the other people who had come to hear her mother speak. "Please," she asked quietly. "Please, bring that money…over here so I can get it!"

The adults in the crowd looked at each other uneasily; some looked up at the sky, or down at the ground. One of the men nudged the pile over with his foot, and it was passed towards her like that, each foot in turn moving the pile a few inches.

The money would soon be in her possession, but Jana still wanted to cry. She didn't understand why.

Suddenly, someone's hand reached down and snatched up the coins with a quick, "Oh, sorry." Jana lunged for the money, her instincts overriding her rational thought, and she found herself staring into the bright eyes of a man with a lot of dark hair scattered over his forehead. He might have been tall, but she couldn't tell because he was doubled over, hands on knees, to talk to her.

"I think this is yours," he said, holding the coins in his outstretched palm. She carefully picked them up, trying to touch his skin as little as possible, but the soldier was already pushing her way through the rapidly dispersing crowd. Jana shrank back and the man straightened. He stood oddly, with his head thrust forward slightly and his hands in his pockets. He could have been shooting the breeze.

"Hold it, sir," the soldier said, her gun strapped across her back and her eyes unfriendly. "This girl is living with a spotter. It's not safe to get near her."

"A spotter? What do you mean by that?"

Although the soldier gave him a look that clearly said that she considered him an idiot, Jana was not surprised. The man wore a thin summer cloak like most of the people in the Market, but his accent marked him from somewhere much farther than this city. "Someone who has the spots, sir," the soldier said. "The red spots, like the Teller has. It's been going around the city all this summer. Killed plenty of people so far."

"Certainly, the spots. I haven't heard them called by that name before. At least, not since…never mind," the strange man said. "I think this should clear things up for you." He whipped a small black wallet out of his pocket and held it in front of the soldier.

"You're from the Planetary Health Commission! I'm very sorry, sir, I didn't mean to bother you in your work. Should I take you to the Sick House now?"

"No, no, that's alright, I have some business to take care of first. But If you could point me in the direction of the nearest unused building over two years old, I would be most obliged." He smiled then, all charm.

"Sir? W-well, there are many abandoned buildings in the poorer district…"

"Excellent. Do you know where this district is?" He was asking Jana. Asking Jana. She lowered her head, but nodded.

"Would you show me where it is? I think I might be able to help."

Jana nodded again, more slowly, but the soldier was aghast. "Sir, she could have the spots! She can't leave here."

"Well, let's see." The man pulled a long silver-ish cylinder from under his cloak, scanned her, and held it close to his face. "No, you're fine. You don't have the spots."

The two adults talked some more, but Jana didn't hear. She was floored. A sonic screwdriver. It had to be. This man was the Doctor himself! Honestly and truly! She looked back at her mom, but Malya did nothing but smile at her. She wanted to shout, _Mom! He's the Doctor!_ But there were so many people around that the words never got past her throat. So she pointed at him, and then pointed out towards the crowds to indicate that she was going away for a while. Her mother just smiled again and nodded.

The Doctor followed Jana's gaze, saw the woman, and walked over to her. Jana held her breath as he greeted Malya. "I'm going to borrow your daughter for a minute; I'm afraid I'm rusty about the geography around here."

Malya's smile didn't change, though her eyes brightened. "Just bring her back, please." The Doctor winked and walked back towards Jana.

And sure enough, Jana found herself strolling beside the Doctor towards the rougher side of town. Here, people brushed past each other quickly, keeping their eyes on their feet in front of them, and there was less noise than in the Market. The air smelled fouler too, enough that Jana wrinkled her nose. The Doctor didn't seem to mind—from her mother's stories, Jana wasn't surprised. But she was curious about one thing, though.

"Do you…" she paused to clear her throat. "Do you really wear a, a bowtie?"

In answer, he rolled down the front of his summer cloak to reveal the bowtie and jacket underneath. "Of course I do. Bowties are cool."

Jana had to smile. It was just like the stories said.

"So your mum tells stories," the Doctor said casually. Jana nodded. "About me." She nodded again, looking off to the side. What if he didn't want to have people telling tales about him?

"Are they good ones?"

Jana looked up again and nodded, eyes wide. "Mom's the…best Teller on the planet," she said, in all seriousness. "She loves those…stories."

He smiled. They were getting into the very poor section now, where many of the buildings were uninhabited and broken down, all sorts of greenery growing in the stone and taking it back to the soil. The Doctor pulled out the screwdriver and pointed it at a few of the walls. "She was telling the Ballad of Donna Noble in the Market, if I'm not mistaken," he said. "That is one of the good ones! Wasn't sure if anyone remembered it anymore…Ha!"

He bounded over to a section of crumbling wall that was coated in a gooey green paste. "Fungus! Known here as Kresher's Last Meal, which it wasn't, actually, I think his last meal was roast beef but that doesn't make a good story, now does it. Likes old crumbly buildings, grows fast, and…" he looked over at her, "is one of the main components of Baccsin AB, which is a sure way to get rid of the spots."

As he was gathering some of the goo, wrapping it up in a leaky handkerchief, he asked, "So, do you have a favorite story?"

"Oh, my favorite? I like…I like stories with River in them."

He completely stopped for a second, staring at the goo. When he spoke, his voice was quieter. "They are good stories, aren't they?"

Jana nodded. "The best," she said. What she wanted to ask, but was afraid to, was why River wasn't with him right then. Of course, she had no idea how old he was at this moment. The stories that Malya told of River and the Doctor were often confusing to try and put in order, and Jana didn't want to give anything away. The worst thing you could do to a story, her mom had said, was tell the ending before it had run its proper course.

The Doctor meanwhile, straightened. "I should tell you about how the universe ended," he said, changing the subject. "That's another good one. Hardly anyone knows that one."

Jana thought suddenly of how much her mother would love the chance to be able to speak with the Doctor, hear his stories and see how the Time Lord was in person. "Please," she asked, "my mother…so long, nothing but stories…" Trying to put her presumptuous request into words almost choked her, but she had to continue. "Make her happy to see, to see the truth."

Fortunately, the Doctor was intelligent enough to interpret her question. "Well, all the things I need to make Baccsin AB are on the TARDIS, anyway…come along, we'll get your mum and I'll show you my TARDIS."

* * *

><p>Malya giggled like a schoolgirl. It had been so long since her mother had laughed like that that Jana had forgotten the sound. She had forgotten that her mother was ever well enough to laugh like that, which was scary considering that she hadn't been sick that long. However, only an hour and a half after drinking the vile liquid that the Doctor said was the cure for the spots, the angry red patches on her body were fading and she seemed to have much more energy.<p>

Of course, the energy could have been excitement from seeing something with her own eyes that had formerly only existed in stories. Or it could have been caused by the Doctor's account of the second Big Bang. Malya and Jana had hung onto every single word, but at the end of the story Malya shook her head with a smile. "It's a wonderful story, but I can't tell it in the Market," she said with a touch of remorse. "Many people are looking for something simpler, something that will add a little magic to their day. They don't want to have to think about it very much, and a story that complex will puzzle them for a long time."

"Well, only for special occasions then," the Doctor said.

All three of them sat in the TARDIS, with the Time Lord in his chair, Malya on the steps and Jana on the floor in front of the console. Now Malya looked over at the Doctor and said, "You've done so much for us. I only wish that I could do something in return."

"No, no, that's fine. I was happy to help," he replied, waving it away.

"I could tell you a story," Malya offered.

This made him laugh. "Sorry, but I think I know all of the stories that you could tell me. You see, I was there."

"I don't believe you know all of them. You don't know many of the stories about River."

The Doctor stopped laughing at once and his face grew very serious. "And _you_ do? How do know all of this?"

Malya smoothed the front of her skirt. "I only know the stories about you that have occurred in the past from this very moment, and only the ones that people observed. You see, Doctor, you've left a trail through time and space, and some of us have dedicated our very lives to finding it."

"Me too," Jana added, to let him know that Malya wasn't only talking about herself. "I'll be a Teller…one day." Despite that fact that words rarely came out of her mouth the way she planned them to.

But the Doctor didn't laugh at her; he simply smiled an understanding sort of smile and looked again at Malya, who said, "You must understand, things that happened yesterday for you in fact may have occurred five hundred years ago for us, and the story survives, given that anyone remembers it and passes it on. Everything that happened in the past from my point of view, and that I have been able to collect, I may tell the story of."

The Doctor still looked skeptical. "You've spent your life hunting down stories about me. You spent your _life_ doing this. And you know more about my own life than I do?"

"You may test that, if you wish," asked Jana's mom quietly. "When was the last time you saw River in a time before the present day?"

"On Andis V," he said cautiously.

"Ah. So you and she had a fight, yes?"

Jana looked up at him quickly, in time to see his face go blank again…all except his eyes. "How did you know that?" he asked.

"I know the story, if you'd like to hear it," Malya said. "I can start at the beginning, and you may stop me whenever you wish. But this might be something that you need to hear."

He looked at her sideways, but finally nodded. "All right, let's hear it."


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: Doctor Who is not mine. **

* * *

><p>"Long ago on the planet Andis V, the skies rained fire and the seas boiled. While most of the planet was covered with one huge metropolis sheltered by a force field, only the Shus'pi people of Mount Tuman dared to live outside, unsheltered from the elements," Malya began. "The Shus'pi were afraid, because Mount Tuman was shaking under their feet and they did not know why. They feared that the god Tuk'tuman was angry, and they tried everything to appease him. The eldest Shus'pi told them that the only way was to sacrifice all of their livestock to the god by throwing it into the cracks in the mountain. This act would leave the Shus'pi without food; however, they were afraid to disobey.<p>

"Then, as they prepared their sacrifice, a blue box fell out of the sky and landed on the highest peak. Out of the box came a man and a woman, both peering around in surprise and dressed in a way that the Shus'pi had never before seen." Malya sat perfectly straight on the stairs, her hands clasped in her lap. She also used her stage voice, the low pitch that could cut through the largest crowds easily. It didn't stop the Doctor from interrupting.

"They were actually quite nice about it," he put in. "Once we had convinced them that we weren't Tuk'tuman's servants sent to kill them. We had to get a little rough with them, too…" He noticed the patient expression that Jana's mom wore, and gestured quickly. "But go on, go on."

Malya waited for a second, then continued, "The two travellers introduced themselves as the Doctor and River Song, and asked to know why the livestock were being herded up the mountain towards the crevasse. They offered to go negotiate with Tuk'tuman in the beasts' stead."

"Yes, we went down there and met with the 'god' and had a lovely chat in which we almost didn't have to blow anything up," the Doctor said. "River got to do her intimidation bit and we sent Tuk'tuman back to where he should have been, and then we got to go to a party. Obviously the Shus'pi recorded this story and somehow it came to you. Still doesn't explain how you know about our fight."

"All good things to those who wait."

The Doctor sighed.

Jana's mom had pity on him and skipped to the part that he was really interested in. Jana sat forward as well; she loved the parts with River and the Doctor. They were always beautiful, the way her mom told them, and so very, very sad.

"The turmoil did not end with Tuk'tuman for the Doctor and River Song, for back on the TARDIS a strange gloom had taken hold. River was quiet, and the Doctor could not get the scenes of the day out of his head. Over and over, he saw all of the times that the both of them could have been killed. Normally this wouldn't have bothered him, but today it was almost more than he could stand. And so, when River asked him where they would go next, he told her that they weren't going anywhere for a while."

"Now hang on a minute, how do you know that?" the Doctor exclaimed. "We were in the TARDIS then and I know for a fact that River and I were the only ones there!"

Malya shrugged, and said, "I am only repeating the story as my father told it to me."

"Your father?"

"Please listen," Jana said. "Please." This was important, she could tell. And maybe the Doctor sensed it too, because he folded his hands in his lap and pressed his lips together.

"She thought that perhaps he wanted to stay in and, _relax_ a bit, but he rejected her advance and paced away. And when River demanded to know what was wrong, he answered snappishly, because he didn't really know."

Jana asked, "What…what was wrong?"

The Doctor didn't answer for a moment. Then, "I don't know. Just, I don't know." He rubbed his nose. "She was being all River-y and, well, it was just too much."

Smiling a very small but kind smile, Malya continued. "River Song did not take well to being spoken to in that voice, especially because she did not understand what she had done and he would not say why. After several minutes of argument, growing fiercer by the second, she asked to leave, and the Doctor landed on Earth and let her out."

"And left," Jana said in a whisper.

Malya nodded and glanced sideways at the Doctor. "All she really wanted was an explanation," she said.

"What was I to explain?" The Doctor messed with his bowtie, pulling it looser.

But Malya was persistent. She could be like that when she wanted to understand a story. Jana had seen her talking with other Tellers, asking detail after detail until it all fit together like a puzzle of words. "Why did you leave?" she asked.

The Doctor stood up at this question and paced around the console, running a hand through his hair again and again. "Oh, I don't know! She didn't seem to realize how close she came to dying that day, and it's not just that day, it could be any day, any day at all that something happens and then-" He snapped his fingers.

"But…it, it already…happened," Jana said. "All of it." The energy that the Doctor exuded was a little frightening.

"Yes, but no, because time can change, it can be rewritten," the Doctor explained. "So at one point something could happen and then the whole thing unravels and I lose all the time I have left." He threw himself back down in his chair. "You know," he said, looking rueful, "I used to have all the time in the universe. And now I don't. I can feel it winding down. All the time I have with her, it's like watching a clock ticking backwards and there's not much you can do to stop it."

Malya looked down. "Is River worth losing some of your freedom?"

He smiled, laughed one soft laugh. "Yes."

"And that clock is still winding down?"  
>"Yes." The Doctor looked over at her and smiled a bit. "Yes, it is. And I'm missing it as we speak."<p>

He jumped up out of his chair again. "Do you want to hear the rest of the story?" Malya asked.

"The rest? No, no. I think I'll go live it instead. Hearing it's like turning to the last page of a book, see. It ruins the story. Takes all the surprises right out of it." The Doctor rummaged in a drawer under the console and came up with the rest of the medicine he had made for Malya. He handed it to the Teller. "There you are; just take that to the people at the Sick House, and tell them to distribute it. They can analyze it and make more, too."

Malya stood, and Jana stood with her. The Doctor escorted them to the door. "Thank you. This means more to me than you can know," Malya said.

The Doctor smiled and hugged her suddenly. To her daughter, Malya looked years younger. "Thank you for the story. And Jana," he said, peering down at her. "The next tale's yours, eh?"

With a wink, he started to withdraw, stopped, opened his mouth, and then closed it again and turned to go back inside. Malya spoke up. "The blue star lily is considered on many planets to be a symbol of regret, apology, and love."

The Doctor saluted and closed the door of the TARDIS. Within a minute, it was gone.

Jana's mom began to laugh, and Jana started to laugh too. She wasn't sure why. Her mom took her hand as they walked towards the Sick House. "Would you like to hear the rest of the story, Jana?" Malya asked.

* * *

><p>The TARDIS materialized in Britain in the year 2011, the same day that he had dropped River off—left her there, actually, if he admitted that to himself. He'd run, because he couldn't face that fact that one day she would be gone. Even though he'd already seen the day, only now did her impending loss really hit him. It wasn't fair to love someone who might not be there all your life. "But what's fair, anyway," the Doctor muttered.<p>

He opened the door and stepped out into a quiet park somewhere outside of the city. Someone had obviously tried to take care of all the tangling plants, but they grew wild anyway, twisting in on themselves and forming thick patches of growth and twining canopies over the trees.

"This is where she is, old girl?" the Doctor asked, laying a hand on the TARDIS. "All right. Here I go."

He found River sitting beside a small pond, which made him laugh. She looked up suddenly and the Doctor grew very serious. Her poker face was second to none, but he could tell that she had cried. His breath hitched a little. River should never ever have to cry.

He knelt beside her, intending to apologize until she felt better, but before he could get the first word out she put her hand over his mouth and shook her head. But she smiled as she did it, and the Doctor could see in her eyes that she was glad to see him.

It made his hearts beat a little faster.

So he held out the blue star lily with both hands in a silent apology.

She took it in both hands and held it up to her nose to smell. "It's lovely," she said. Her eyes found his. "So. What happened?"

And here was the time for an explanation. "River," he said, trying to figure out the best way to say what he needed to, "we just had a really rather dangerous adventure, in which we both nearly died several times—"  
>"That's nothing new," River pointed out.<p>

"No, I know that, I know that…but it just kind of occurred to me that we, that you, might actually die, and that would be bad. I mean, it would be terrible. It would be…" Her smile was not helping. The look in her eyes was not helping. Her hair was not helping. It was actually all terribly distracting.

"…the worst thing," he finished. "Because then I'd never see you again. And I like seeing you, I like it very much, and not seeing you ever again would make me sad." She just kept looking at him with that River-y expression. It was starting to derail his train of thought.

Somewhere in the distance, bells were ringing; people were getting out of church. And right then and there, he swore to himself that he would marry River Song, no matter how long it took to do so.

"Yes?" River prompted, still smiling that smile.

He couldn't say everything he was thinking right now. He'd bungle the explanation. And, he figured, if he was going to bungle the explanation then he might as well just kiss the girl.

* * *

><p>Jana sighed happily and looked out from her tent across Pliny Market. She loved the stories with River in them. Malya sat beside her, stroking her hair. "Well, what do you think?" Malya asked. "Is it a good story?"<p>

Jana nodded quickly. "Yes! But…Momma…how do you know…that that's what happened?"

"I'll show you how I know," Malya said, "if you promise to keep it a secret."

"I promise!"

* * *

><p>Back on the TARDIS, the Doctor had finished telling River about his adventures on the planet Ovid, leaving out a few minor details, such as his revelations. Those heavy conversations could wait a while; right now there was a universe to explore.<p>

"I really should find a way to thank those two," the Doctor mused. His eyes lit up. "River! I'm going to stop on Ovid for a few minutes. There's someone I need to see…now, there must be pen and paper here somewhere."

* * *

><p>From under her bedding, Malya removed a bundle of papers tied together with green ribbon. Elegant handwriting filled page after page after page. The very last page held only an inscription and a signature: "For Malya and Jana. Thank you. The Doctor."<p>

Jana gasped, and Malya said, "The Doctor himself gave these to my father, who in turn passed them on to me. Most of my best stories are in here. No one else knows them."

"And…all the stories about River…"

"Most of the ones I know come from these papers."

A crowd had already started to form outside of their tent. People were arriving in droves to see the newly cured Teller and hear a new story to get them through the day.

"What do you think, dear? What story should I tell them today?"

Jana thought for a moment. "The story with…Jim the fish!"

"I've told that one before twice! But I don't think it would do any harm to tell it again. Jim the fish it is." Malya and Jana stepped outside and sat cross-legged on the ground. Everyone drew close to listen.

Malya leaned over to her daughter. "Jana, why don't you tell this one?"

Jana froze, looking out at all the people that had gathered, and felt the words stick in her throat. But then she saw her mother's encouraging smile, swallowed, and said, "This, ladies and gentlemen…is another dashing tale…of the Doctor, River Song, and Jim the fish."

Her mother watched with a proud smile as Jana's words unfolded the story, bit by bit, until the very end.

* * *

><p><em>AN: Thanks for reading, everyone! The only people I can thank by name are AiramT, ObscurelyScout, the laughing hermit, and my anon reviewer, but anyone who gave this tale a passing glance is a winner in my book._

_I think this might be a bittersweet moment for River: on one hand, she knows that the Doctor knows that he loves her, but on the other hand, the next time they meet he won't have had this epiphany yet. _

_Please review, if you'd like. I always appreciate feedback._


End file.
